Florida State paid more than $100,000 in tax dollars to fight public records requests.

Former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden talks to reporters before presenting the Bobby Bowden National Coach of the Year Award to Alabama football coach Nick Saban on Sunday.

TALLAHASSEE — Florida State's outside legal costs while unsuccessfully challenging part of an NCAA penalty that took away a dozen of former coach Bobby Bowden's victories totaled more than $172,000.

The university paid the Gray Robinson law firm of Tallahassee for representing it in appealing part of the NCAA penalty and to defend a public records suit brought by media organizations.

The university spent $70,000 of boosters' money to appeal the penalties and more than $102,000 in tax dollars to unsuccessfully fight the public records requests. The school provided its legal costs Wednesday.

The public records suit by The Associated Press and two dozen other media companies accused the NCAA and Florida State of violating the state's open records laws by denying public access to the documents on the school's appeal. Florida State argued that it was caught in the middle of the dispute.

A judge, however, ruled in August that the documents were public record.

Bowden, who retired after 34 years following Florida State's Gator Bowl victory over West Virginia, lost 12 of his 389 career victories and the school also vacated a national track and field title as a result of an academic cheating scandal involving 61 athletes.